A rally was held in East Pasadena on Saturday at the site of the former Robin’s Woodfire BBQ Grill to collect signatures and build support to recall Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón.
The group “Victims of Violent Crime for the Recall of District Attorney Gascón,” held signs accusing Gascón of supporting murderers and invited people to sign the recall petition, according to KABC News.
Organizers blasted Gascón for caring more about criminals than the victims they left behind.
Also on Saturday, organizers collected petition signatures near where Gascón’s home, setting up in front of a school across from his house in the Naples area of Long Beach.
The recall supporters collected “dozens and dozens” of signatures on the sidewalk in front of Naples Elementary School.
One of the people attending the signature-gathering event was a crime victim’s mother who voted for Gascón last November.
It was not clear whether Gascón was home at the time. He did not come out to talk with the recall proponents.
Recall organizers have until October 27 to gather 580,000 qualified signatures, she said. The group has said it will try to collect 750,000 to 800,000.
Signature-gathering was approved for the effort on Thursday.
Backers of the recall must gather valid signatures from 579,062 registered voters in the county — 10% of the total number of voters in the county — by Oct. 27 for the recall to qualify for the ballot.
Elected officials must be in office for at least 90 days before a recall effort can be started. Gascón was sworn in on Dec. 7.
Gascón has drawn criticism from crime victims and prosecutors over various directives, including not seeking the death penalty, not seeking sentencing enhancements in most cases and keeping cases involving juveniles out of adult courts.
“George Gascón got elected by disguising a radical, dangerous, and pro-criminal agenda as `criminal justice reform,’ but that’s not what he is doing,” said Desiree Andrade, organizer and spokeswoman for the effort to recall Gascón.
“What he failed to mention was that he would cater to the most heinous offenders in our society at the expense of victims and let cold-blooded killers back onto our streets,” she said. “We have no choice but to seek Gascón’s immediate removal from office because his twisted social experiment is jeopardizing the safety of our communities and re-victimizing victims and their families all over again.”
The effort to recall Gascón began Feb. 27 with a “victims vigil” outside the downtown Hall of Justice where signatures for an intent to recall were gathered.
The city councils of at least 14 of Los Angeles County’s 88 cities have passed votes of no confidence against Gascón, including Beverly Hills, Redondo Beach, Manhattan Beach, Diamond Bar, Santa Clarita and Lancaster.
The recall petition may be seen online here.
The recall attempt has drawn the backing of Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, former Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, former Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich and former Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine.
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One thought on “Rally Held in Pasadena to Recall District Attorney Gascón”
When you have to use hyperbole and lies to make your case, as Desiree Andrade does, you’re on very shaky ground. Those of us who oppose the death penalty do so because the government should not exterminate human beings: it really is that simple. Gascon does not take crime, or victims, lightly. But he is intelligent enough to see a bigger picture than Andrade’s “an eye for an eye” approach. I have been a victim of violent crime twice. Until it happens to you, you cannot conceive of the terror, pain, trauma, and – afterward – overwhelming rage. But recalling a competent, forward-thinking official because he favors a humane approach, makes no sense at all.